The Islanders Are in Desperate Need of a Goal-Scorer
After the All-Star Break, the New York Islanders have a record of 16-17-6, putting them in 25th place in the NHL. The main reason for the Islanders’ disappointing season has been their inability to score. There has been talk that the Isles should make a move to secure a defenseman. But the truth is, the Islanders need a goal-scorer and they need one now if they want to have a successful second half of the season.
Subpar First Line
The Islanders’ first line consists of Anders Lee, Mathew Barzal and Josh Bailey. The three forwards have scored a total of 24 goals this season.
Chris Kreider (NYR), Leon Draisaitl (EDM), Auston Matthews (TOR) and Alex Ovechkin (WSH) are the NHL goal-scoring leaders and each has more goals as an individual than Lee, Barzal and Bailey combined. While the Islanders have played the fewest number of games in the league, there is no reason why a single player should score more goals than three top-line forwards.
Josh Bailey didn’t shoot this. pic.twitter.com/CD84MUDZtE
— EVERYDAYISLES (@EverydayIsles) January 15, 2022
No True Goal-Scorer
There have only been four Islanders to break the 10-goal mark this season: Brock Nelson (14), Anders Lee (11), Mathew Barzal (10) and Oliver Wahlstrom (10).
Nelson has been the Islanders’ leading goal-scorer since the 2019-20 season. However, even he cannot be considered a true goal-scorer. Nelson has recorded only one goal in his last five games. He also does not get as many shots on goal as one would think. He leads the team with a 20.6 shooting percentage; however, that is only because he has 68 shots on goal.
On the contrary, Wahlstrom does a great job getting pucks to the net and leads the team with 97 shots on goal. However, he is on the third line with linemates who have shooting percentages of 7.7 and 4.9. Wahlstrom needs to be on a line with more consistent and effective forwards for his offense to really be a difference maker for the team.
Losing to the Kraken
The Islanders’ last game before the All-Star break was against the Seattle Kraken at UBS Arena. The Islanders lost 3-0, giving the Kraken their first shutout in franchise history. It was also the fifth-time the Islanders had been shutout this season. This loss was the nail in the coffin for several Islanders’ fans.
The Isles only got 19 shots on goal through three periods of hockey. The Islanders should have been able to score on Kraken goalie Philipp Grubauer, who has a save percentage of .887.
Barry Trotz is usually very optimistic in his post-game interviews. However, he did not hold back in his interview following the game against the Kraken.
“To me it’s one of the more disappointing games that I’ve coached as an Islanders coach to be honest with you,” Trotz said. “You’re only as good as your top players, our top players weren’t very good tonight.”
Second Half of the Season
The Islanders’ first game back from the All-Star Break is on Feb. 9 in Vancouver at 10:30 p.m. EST. It is extremely important for the Islanders to turn their season around — starting with this game. The Isles are currently 17 points out of a Wild Card spot and while it is already doubtful they will be able to slide into the postseason, they definitely won’t make the Stanley Cup Playoffs if they continue to struggle offensively.
Even the best scorers on the Islanders aren’t players that score night in and night out. The team needs at least one player that they can rely on to consistently generate offense. Hopefully, a move will be made soon, considering the Trade Deadline is approaching and Austin Czarnik was put on waivers and picked up by the Kraken on Feb. 8.
I am a huge Islanders fan and love spreading my passion for the team here at Drive4Five. Along with writing, I also co-manage the Drive4Five TikTok and Facebook accounts.
